The Matter of Microtransactions

This week, I was joined by Timothy Wetzel from the site: A Paladin Without a Crusade to talk about Microtransactions and the recent Payday 2 situation.

We started with introductions and what Tim does over at his site. From there we talked about games we’ve played and how Tim is getting into the first Witcher. We talked about digital platforms and looking at GOG vs. Steam in terms of usability and functionality. Before getting to microtransactions, I asked Tim about his thoughts on two big consumer issues that happened with Steam earlier this year: The ability to refund games and Steam’s attempt at monetizing mods.

Finally we got to our main topic, talking about microtransactions and their use in the Game Industry. We began with simply defining a microtransaction, as there is some confusion among consumers about that. I talked more about my thoughts on the Payday 2 debacle that’s been going on and why it’s getting so much flak from the fanbase. One correction, the drill drop rate actually has about a 25% to drop once a week, not a really low drop chance after every heist. For our final topic, we talked more about the use of microtransactions in single player games as a form of cheating or skipping content.

Lastly, as I said earlier this week, I’m pushing the Patreon campaign for the site as I really need to hit the first goal soon. Since the podcasts are one of the most popular parts of the site, I’m posting about it here as well. Any help with donations or spreading the word would be greatly appreciated.

• Here are my posts relating to Overkill Software and the recent problems Payday 2 had with microtransactions
• To follow Tim, here is the link to A Paladin Without a Crusade

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